2001 Ron Paul 20:1
Mr. PAUL. Madam Speaker, today I must
vote against HCR 41. While I certainly offer
my personal sympathy to the victims in El Salvador,
and also join in encouraging relief
agencies to increase their assistance to these
individuals, I cannot support this resolution.
2001 Ron Paul 20:2
In the past I have complained that similar
bills have come to the House Floor without
going through the committee process. In this
instance the committees were included and I
applaud the Chairman for ensuring we had an
opportunity to discuss this issue at committee.
I am also grateful to the committee staff who
worked with me in helping facilitate that discussion.
2001 Ron Paul 20:3
At the subcommittee I introduced an amendment
for discussion purposes only. That
amendment would have deleted the specific
references to governmental assistance contained
in this bill. Had that amendment been
adopted I could have supported this resolution.
Simply, I believe it is not proper for us to
force taxpayers in this country to provide this
kind of assistance by having the IRS collect
these funds. Next, I believe that the Red
Cross, for example, would not only be a more
sympathetic entity for the purposes of collecting
funds used for relief, but also that it
would be a more efficient distributor of such
funds than are the plethora of government
agencies referenced in this resolution.
